Lebanon
Balch was officially given the reins of Vermont’s roster for the annual Twin State high school football tilt on Wednesday, introduced in a news release with Winnisquam’s Patrick Riberdy, the New Hampshire coach. Both will be representing their states for the first time in the 65th Shrine Game, which is set for Aug. 4, 2018, at Castleton University’s Dave Wolk Stadium.
Balch went 3-6 in his first season in charge at Windsor in 2013; his Yellowjackets have known nothing but success since. The Jacks capped their second straight undefeated season in November with an overtime defeat of archrival Woodstock in the VPA Division III final, upping their ongoing winning streak to 20 games.
A 1992 Windsor graduate, Balch owns a 34-13 record in five seasons on the Jacks’ sidelines.
“I don’t know the whole process, but I’m excited about being the coach,” Balch said on Wednesday. “I think I’ve become more interested in it the last couple of years as I’ve coached more and gotten involved in it a little. I went to some practices, and I know some of the coaches who have done it in the past. It sort of grew in my interest in that respect.”
Balch takes over a Vermont squad that’s enjoyed victories the past two years after a 15-summer run of losses to the Granite State. The Green Mountaineers overcame five turnovers to win last August’s showdown, 19-0. Vermont broke the losing streak in 2016 in a record-setting 50-2 rout.
The 43-year-old Balch got a taste of all-star football last month as offensive coordinator for the South squad in the annual North-South Game at Middlebury College. Balch understands he still has a lot of work to do to determine his 36-player Shrine roster.
“I believe we’ll put together a selection committee and start meeting real soon to go over players to ask to be on the team,” Balch said. “I have to put together a coaching staff. Hopefully I’ll get a few Windsor guys, but I’ll need a larger staff than that. I’ll be getting the schedule of events any day so we can follow that process.”
Balch has no lack of Windsor talent from which to start building his Shrine team. His son, Seth, started at quarterback the last three years, completing 152 of 261 career tosses for 2,883 yards and 52 touchdowns. Senior running back Trevor Worrall is another possible candidate, a four-year contributor who amassed 2,643 rushing yards and 28 TDs during his varsity career despite missing half of his junior season to a knee injury. The Jacks had nine seniors on this season’s championship team.
“The only evaluating I’ve done so far of senior quarterbacks was at North-South,” the elder Balch said. “There were several kids to look at there. We have a few (at Windsor) who are obviously strong candidates for the game. But I have to tell you there are an awful lot of strong players throughout the state and an awful lot in Divisions I and II, which is a tougher level of football.”
Balch got a close look at the Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl from the standpoint of a relative when his nephew, Jeffrey Danyew, suited up for Vermont in the 2008 contest. He’s observed Shrine practices, but has never coached in the contest before.
Riberdy has been a major factor in the growth of football at Winnisquam, which plays in NHIAA Division III. The Bears reached a state final under Riberdy in 2009 and were semifinalists two years ago. This past season was Riberdy’s 11th at the Tilton school; the Bears were 1-7 and missed the state tournament.
Castleton announced plans on Dec. 1 to rename Spartan Stadium in honor of Wolk, who retired earlier this year after 16 years as the school’s president. An official renaming ceremony will be held prior to the 2018-19 school year, according to a school news release.
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.